PROVO — With the announcements that Jernaro Gilford and Reno Mahe have been added to BYU football's coaching staff, head coach Kalani Sitake has rounded out his crew for 2016. Here is my grading of each of Sitake's hires.

Ty Detmer, offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach

Despite being undersized and having below-average arm strength for an NFL quarterback, Detmer managed to hang around in the league for 15 years. His extended tenure in the pros can be explained by his incredible football intelligence and his willingness to mentor young quarterbacks. For the majority of his professional career, Detmer was a glorified quarterbacks coach. Cougar fans are excited to see what he can do with signal-callers Tanner Mangum and Taysom Hill, if he comes back.

In terms of ability to recruit, Detmer is a very likable guy. He's quick witted and approachable and has good people skills. If that's not enough for a recruit, he can always bust out his Heisman Trophy.

The knocks on Detmer are that he's never called plays or installed an offensive scheme as a coach at the collegiate level. When he was quarterback under Norm Chow, however, he had free reign to call plays and audibles at the line of scrimmage. In terms of installing a scheme, BYU fans shouldn't be too worried as a former NFL teammate of his recounted an event where Detmer was literally teaching the coaches about their scheme when he was a backup quarterback for the 49ers. Sitake hit it out of the park on this selection.

Grade: A

Ilaisa Tuiaki, defensive coordinator/linebackers coach

First of all, it's a wise move that Sitake didn't appoint himself to be the defensive coordinator. Being a first-time head coach, he has enough on his plate. He and Tuiaki are close friends, and it's apparent Sitake trusts him after the two worked together at Utah and Oregon State.

Besides the friendship, there are some good reasons for Sitake to believe in Tuiaki's abilities. Tuiaki was the only noncoordinator to be nominated for the Broyles Award, given to the nation's most outstanding collegiate assistant coach, in 2013 after a terrific year coaching the Ute defensive line. Former players speak well of him and he has proven he has a good knowledge of and ability to teach technique and position mastery. The question is whether or not Tuiaki can be successful coaching a whole defense instead of just one position. Sitake will most likely have a lot of input on the defensive side of the ball and can help Tuiaki as he gets his feet wet.

Grade: B+

Ed Lamb, assistant head coach/safeties/special teams

The hiring of Lamb is a big get for the program. He was a successful head coach at Southern Utah University. The Thunderbirds hadn't historically been a great program, but Lamb took them to the FCS playoffs twice. His experience as a head coach will be invaluable to Sitake. The new head coach will be able to bounce ideas off of Lamb and get guidance in how to direct the program.

Lamb is also a good hire because he is a guy who is not LDS but thrived in the culture at the Y and bought into it fully. In that respect, I expect him to fill a gap that was left when receivers coach, Guy Holliday, accepted a position at Utah. Lamb adds veteran leadership to a young and inexperienced but talented staff.

Grade: A

Ben Cahoon, wide receivers

I will miss Holliday's ability to inspire fans and players with his fiery personality. As mentioned, he was also a great ambassador for the school and helped ease the transition for many non-LDS kids in the program. However, in my opinion, his receivers underperformed this year, especially against defenses that employed man-press coverage against the Cougs.

Cahoon was a precise route runner as a receiver who rode his technical soundness to a Hall of Fame career in the CFL. He also has experience coaching, as he was on BYU's staff for two years from 2011-2012. Cahoon helped further the career of the Y's all-time leading receiver Cody Hoffman and did a solid job with the receivers overall during his stint. Personally, I feel like he got a bad deal when he was fired after the 2012 season. Cahoon's meticulous focus on route running and creating separation will hopefully help Cougar receivers reach their full potential.

Grade: B+

Steve Clark, tight ends

Clark has done just about everything in his coaching career. He's been an offensive coordinator for three different schools and has coached six teams in his 20-year career. During his stint as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Southern Utah, Clark helped develop future NFL draft pick Brad Sorensen. This will be his first time coaching the tight ends specifically. I like this approach Sitake has taken to get a few guys who have a wealth of experience to complement the relative inexperience of himself and some other staff members.

Grade: B+

Mike Empey, offensive line

Empey played alongside Detmer as an offensive lineman so the two already have a history together. Empey has quite a bit of coaching experience. He was a graduate assistant for the Y from 1994-1996 before heading to UNLV to coach the tight ends. After a brief stint as head coach at Snow College, Empey again took a position on BYU's staff from 2000-2004. He was not retained when Mendenhall took over the program. Empey did not coach full-time again until 2012 when he took a position as offensive coordinator at American Fork High School. His experience, like Lamb's and Clark's, will be a benefit to the program.

Grade: B

Reno Mahe, running backs

Mahe definitely has some things going for him. He is very energetic and well-regarded in the Polynesian community. No doubt his personality was a major factor in the decision to hire him as Mahe will be a good recruiter. He also carved out a solid five-year NFL career after a terrific stint as a Cougar.

However, he has very limited experience as a coach at any level. Former BYU running backs coach Mark Atuaia didn't either and he turned out to be effective. Still, there are just too many unknowns to give this hire a better grade.

Grade: B-

Jernaro Gilford, cornerbacks

Gilford is one of the most important hires on this staff. If BYU is going to be successful long term, it needs to do a better job recruiting African-Americans. Gilford is a non-LDS, African-American who grew up in the inner city and managed to find success at the Y. He will have instant credibility with African-American recruits and can ease the culture shock of coming to Provo.

All of that wouldn't matter, though, if Gilford couldn't coach. He doesn't have a lot of experience but has been impressive in his first few years. For the past couple of seasons, Gilford has been on Lamb's staff at Southern Utah coaching the secondary. Under his guidance, the Thunderbirds had the third-most interceptions in the FCS in 2015. While it would be nice if he had a little experience at the FBS level, Gilford is a nice addition to the staff.

Grade: B

Steve Kaufusi, defensive line

Kaufusi has been a staple on the BYU sidelines for 15 years. In those years, he has developed some great talent, including Ziggy Ansah who, under Kaufusi, went from not knowing how to put on his pads to being the fifth overall pick in the 2013 NFL Draft. Kaufusi's lines have been a major cog in Mendenhall's defenses that ranked in the top 20 five times since 2007. It's nice to have some carryover from the previous regime and Kaufusi has consistently produced in Provo.

Grade: B+

Conclusion

Overall, I'm very excited about this coaching staff and I think most Cougar fans are, as well. Sitake's staff has a nice mix of veteran coaches and up-and-coming assistants. BYU needs the coaches to gel quickly as they face arguably the hardest schedule in school history.

What do you think of the hires, Cougar nation?

Dylan Cannon is a regular KSL.com contributor and can be reached at DylanCannon86@gmail.com or via twitter @DylanCannon11.

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